<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Too Comfortable by Rudolphsd</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23166610">Too Comfortable</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rudolphsd/pseuds/Rudolphsd'>Rudolphsd</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Comfort in a skyless world [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Kingdom Hearts</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Aqua &amp; Terra &amp; Ventus Are Family (Kingdom Hearts), Canon Compliant, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Kingdom Hearts III - Limit Cut, Kingdom Hearts III Spoilers, Post-Kingdom Hearts III, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, heart hotel friend group, limit cut spoilers, ven loves and misses sora</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 13:01:32</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>7,927</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23166610</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rudolphsd/pseuds/Rudolphsd</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>For Ven, the hardest part of traveling in the realm of darkness wasn't the darkness. It wasn't the Heartless, or the way time didn't work, or being separated from his other friends. It wasn't the fact that the realm of darkness was the worst place he had ever been to.</p><p>It was the sinking feeling that Aqua and Terra liked it.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Aqua &amp; Terra &amp; Ventus (Kingdom Hearts), Ventus &amp; Roxas &amp; Xion (Kingdom Hearts)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Comfort in a skyless world [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2231982</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>121</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Too Comfortable</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ven knew that the realm of darkness would be dark (it was in the <em> name </em> for crying out loud), but he didn’t really think about what that would mean until he was there.</p><p>Everything was fine at first. He remembered stepping through the portal they had made and looking around in amazement. There were twisted spires hanging over gray water that crashed against the rocky shore with a quiet hiss and a pale, washed-out imitation of the sun at the far end.</p><p>“Woah.”</p><p>Terra was looking around, too, but he got over it much faster than Ven did. He turned to Aqua.</p><p>“Are you okay?”</p><p>Terra’s voice was oddly metallic through his armor, but Ven could hear the concern in it. Aqua was looking out at the colorless sea and the gray waves that lapped the shore.</p><p>“Yes. It’s not as bad as I thought it would be.”</p><p>Her voice sounded fine, but he couldn’t see her face behind her helmet. </p><p>“Let us know if something happens,” Ven said. </p><p>She tore her eyes away from the water and looked at Ven.</p><p>“I will. Do you feel anything from Sora?”</p><p>Ven shook his head.</p><p>“No, sorry.”</p><p>“That’s alright,” she said. “We can follow the path until we find something.”</p><p>Ven nodded and followed behind her. Quickly, the rocky shore was replaced by cracked amalgamations emitting an eerie blue light.</p><p>“This is around where the Destiny Islands were when they fell to darkness. I met up with Mickey around here, too.”</p><p>Her voice was… cheerful.</p><p>Before Ven could think too hard about that, a wave of Heartless emerged from the shadows.</p><p>“Let’s play a game,” Aqua said as she lined up her Shotlock. “Whoever defeats the most Water Cores wins!”</p><p>“You’re on!” Terra shouted in reply.</p><p>“Yeah!”</p><p>There were only two Water Cores in the wave. Ven shot an Aero spell to gather them in one place and lined up his Shotlock-</p><p>Only for Terra to strike them down in a single hit.</p><p>“Oh, come on Terra! Those were mine!”</p><p>“Gotta be faster than that.” Ven could hear the smile in his voice. “Look out behind you! There’s a Neoshadow!”</p><p>Ven turned and swiped at it with Wayward Wind. In a few hits, it dissolved into shadow.</p><p>He turned to his friends, but the wave was completely gone.</p><p>“I’m gonna win next time,” Ven promised.</p><p>Terra rested his hand on Ven’s head. Normally, he would have ruffled his hair, but since it was covered by his helmet, he just rested it there for a second.</p><p>Ven missed when he could get his hair ruffled, and they had just started.</p><p>
  <em> No, I gotta think positive. Can’t focus on all of the things I miss from the Realm of Light. </em>
</p><p>“I always made up little games for myself to pass the time,” Aqua explained as they continued forward. “They were little challenges to myself, to help me move forward. I was always thinking about you two. Games are easier to think of when there’s more than one player.”</p><p>“We’ll be happy to play them,” Ven said.</p><p>“As long as you be careful,” Aqua said.</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>They made up and played games for the next… stretch.</p><p>That was another thing Ven noticed. They were moving forward and making progress on the path, but the rest was too hard to determine. How long had passed? How far had they gone? Ven had no way of knowing. </p><p>A Darkside got in a lucky hit on the back of Terra’s legs, cutting through his armor and into his skin. He and Aqua had sat down to check on it and see if they could repair the tear in his armor or if he would have to dismiss and resummon it, or if it would even be worth the trouble.</p><p>At first, Ven had kept watch for them, but pretty soon, it became clear that no Heartless were going to bother them until they kept moving.</p><p>
  <em> How considerate of them. </em>
</p><p>There was a side path Ven considered exploring, but he thought better of it. Instead, he pulled out his Gummi phone.</p><p>It was difficult to do with his armor. Using it was even more difficult, but Ven managed to type out an instant message to Roxas and Xion’s Kingstagram accounts.</p><p>
  
</p><p>He got a response almost immediately.</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Ven smiled. He looked ridiculous. Sora would’ve-</p><p>Ven tightened his lips and sighed.</p><p>
  <br/>
<br/>
</p><p>The response was immediate.</p><p>
  <br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Ven blinked. There was no way he read that right. He looked up, but Terra and Aqua hadn’t moved. His last two messages were sent less than thirty seconds apart.</p><p>
  
</p><p>After a moment of hesitation, he called Roxas. His face appeared in front of him, and Ven frowned. The red was completely gone from his hair, so they weren’t playing a joke on him.</p><p>“Woah!”</p><p>Ven blinked. Oh yeah, Roxas had never seen his armor before.</p><p>“It’s me. Can you hear me?”</p><p>“Yeah. Dude, that armor is awesome! Where’d you get it?”</p><p>Ven rubbed the shoulder where his pauldron normally was. </p><p>“It was made for me.”</p><p>Thinking of Master Eraqus hurt.</p><p>“It looks so much cooler than our old coats,” Roxas said, shaking Ven from his thoughts.</p><p>“You mean those leather bathrobes?”</p><p>“Shut up. It’s not like I chose ‘em.”</p><p>“I guess you’re right,” Ven said.</p><p>Roxas looked around.</p><p>“Uh, you okay?”</p><p>“Yeah,” Ven said. “Just a little spooked. Time is weird here.”</p><p>“Okay, because I gotta go,” Roxas said. “I ran out of class to take this.”</p><p>“Oh! Sorry. Wait- class? You’re going to school?”</p><p>“Yup. I’ll tell you all about it some time.”</p><p>“You better.” Ven paused. “Uh, Roxas?”</p><p>“Yeah?”</p><p>“Time… time is different here. If you don’t hear from me for a while, don’t be afraid to call. I don’t want to dip out on you two like…”</p><p>“Like Sora,” Roxas finished quietly. “I know.”</p><p>“Say hi to Lea for me.”</p><p>“Will do.”</p><p>Roxas hung up.</p><p>Ven put his Gummiphone away. Terra stood up and stretched.</p><p>“All good to go?” Ven asked.</p><p>“Yup,” Terra said. “Nothing a little resummoning couldn’t fix.”</p><p>Aqua put her hand on his arm. “Tell me if you start to feel like the darkness is getting to you.” She looked over at Ven. “Both of you.”</p><p>They nodded.</p><p>“Let’s go. I think the darkness is thicker up ahead.”</p><p>Terra’s voice sounded less worried than Ven’s would have been if he had said it.</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>They were cutting through a mass of Heartless that Aqua called a ‘Demon Tower’ when, suddenly, she shouted, “Mickey!”</p><p>Ven started looking around, but he didn’t see him anywhere.</p><p>“Where?”</p><p>“Do you mean the king?” Terra asked from the cluster of Heartless he was finishing off. “We should finish these Heartless, then talk.”</p><p>Terra and Ven looked at each other and nodded. They each threw their Keyblades, and they whirled around them with the force of a tornado, ripping the rest of the Demon Tower apart. Aqua had stopped and was looking around. </p><p>“Do you see him?” she asked when Ven and Terra approached her.</p><p>“No,” they said.</p><p>“Isn’t Mickey in the realm of light?” Ven asked. “I thought he was looking for Sora with Donald and Goofy.”</p><p>“That should be right,” Terra said.</p><p>“I guess I can call him,” Aqua said.</p><p>He picked up immediately.</p><p>“Hey there fellas! Is everything alright?”</p><p>“I thought I heard your voice,” Aqua said. “Are you alright?”</p><p>“Uh huh! Well, no sign of Sora, but other than that, we’re all doing fine. How are you doing?”</p><p>“I could have sworn I heard your voice,” Aqua said. “It was just like- oh.” She looked down slightly. “I understand now. It was merely a memory. Nothing more.”</p><p>“Oh, didja remember something from when we were fighting together?”</p><p>“Yes. But it’s alright now. How are Donald and Goofy?”</p><p>“They miss Sora,” Mickey said. “Well, we all do.”</p><p>They nodded. Aqua and Terra had hardly known him, but Sora shone so brightly he left a mark on everyone he met.</p><p>“We should go,” Aqua said. </p><p>“Good luck,” Mickey said.</p><p>“You too.”</p><p>“Let’s go,” Aqua said the second the screen went dark.</p><p>Ven and Terra looked at each other.</p><p>“Are you sure you’re okay?” Terra asked. “Has this happened before?”</p><p>“I think so. We should keep going. We don’t want to leave Sora waiting.”</p><p>“Let us know if this happens again,” Ven said.</p><p>“I will,” Aqua said. “Now let’s go.”</p><p>So she didn’t want to talk about it. That was fine.</p><p>It didn’t mean Ven wouldn’t be worried, but she was right- they had to look for Sora.</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>They were surrounded by Heartless, and Ven’s breath was getting short. For a second, he felt a pang of fear.</p><p>Then his heart told him what to do.</p><p>Ven held up Wayward Wind and shouted, “Together!”</p><p>“Right behind you”</p><p>Terra’s Keyblade joined it.</p><p>“Let’s do it.”</p><p>Once Aqua's Keyblade was in position, they spoke in unison.</p><p>“LIGHT!”</p><p>The ground beneath them began to glow in the shape of a giant Wayfinder. Everywhere around them was lit by the merciless shine of their light.</p><p>When the light faded, there wasn’t a Heartless in sight.</p><p>Ven dismissed Wayward Wind and pumped his fist in the air.</p><p>“That was AWESOME!”</p><p>Terra and Aqua laughed. Aqua patted his head, and Terra nudged his shoulder.</p><p>“That was a good idea, Ven,” Aqua said.</p><p>“Team attacks are so cool,” Ven said. “Like the one we did…” the excitement drained from Ven. His voice got ten times quieter. “Like the one we did at the Keyblade Graveyard.”</p><p>Terra and Aqua were Ven’s best friends in all the worlds, his best friends <em> ever</em>.</p><p>Best friends weren’t supposed to have awkward silences between them.</p><p>And yet.</p><p><em> And yet</em>.</p><p>Ven opened his mouth to say something, anything, just to break it, but he couldn’t think of anything to say. He could do nothing but squirm in the silence.</p><p>“I don’t remember that,” Terra finally said. </p><p>“We’ll have to show it to you some time,” Aqua said. She put her hand on his shoulder. “Are you alright, Ven?”</p><p>“Just a little cut up.”</p><p>Aqua healed him with a full-strength healing spell before he could even finish his sentence. Before, he would have complained that she was babying him, but after losing Sora, he understood a little now.</p><p>“We should take a break,” Terra said. </p><p>Ven could barely hear his voice. Terra had been so quiet lately. He was never as energetic as Ven, but he was so subdued now, like he was afraid of raising his voice at all.</p><p>“That sounds like a good idea,” Aqua said.</p><p>They all sat against an outcropping of rocks. Aqua sat in a way that made Ven think she was meditating. It couldn’t have been comfortable in their armor. Terra pulled out his Gummiphone and started speaking to what sounded like Riku. Ven pulled out his own Gummiphone and absent-mindedly scrolled through Kingstagram. Roxas and Xion posted lots of selfies and pictures with Lea and Isa. They were prone to posting more varied pictures on their own accounts. Naminé posted spectacular landscapes that made Ven’s heart ache for the realm of light and sunshine. He’d never appreciated how good the light of the sun had made him feel until it was gone. Ven debated between swiping past her posts and lingering on them.</p><p>Ven had a Kingstagram account. Maybe he could post a picture of the realm of darkness or the three of them and fill it with cheesy hashtags that would make him smile. He looked over at Aqua and Terra, but Aqua was still meditating, and Terra was wrapping up his call.</p><p>“Take care of yourself, Riku.”</p><p>“I will. You do the same.”</p><p>Terra hung up and put away his Gummiphone, but instead of standing up, he took a deep breath and tilted his head back against the rocks.</p><p>Ven was on his feet in an instant, which made Aqua summon her Keyblade, which made Terra jump up and summon his Keyblade.</p><p>“Sorry,” Ven said, “but what’s wrong, Terra?”</p><p>He drooped his shoulders and dismissed his Keyblade.</p><p>“Kairi went to sleep.”</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“What do you mean?” Aqua asked. “Is that a euphemism?”</p><p>Terra shook his head. “No, she literally put herself to sleep so the scientists at Radiant Garden could study her heart. She thinks it’s the key to finding Sora.”</p><p>“Copycat,” Ven said weakly.</p><p>Nobody laughed.</p><p>Ven could never blame Kairi for that choice. His own unfathomable grief from being ripped away from the people he loved was softened by Sora’s sunshine heart. Being asleep was the only way he could bear more than ten years of regret and pain. How could he ever judge someone for doing the same thing on purpose?</p><p>“We should get going,” Aqua said. “The sooner we find Sora, the sooner everything will be back to normal.”</p><p>Finding Sora wouldn’t stop Aqua from jumping at shadows. Finding Sora wouldn’t make Terra any less quiet.</p><p>But maybe it would help.</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>Aqua stopped and pointed at a twisted spire jabbing at the dark sky.</p><p>“Do you think we could get up there?”</p><p>Ven looked at it. It was surrounded by lumpy rock formations and other stalagmites that looked like the decayed remains of some long-dead beast.</p><p>“Maybe,” Ven said. “Terra might have trouble, but I think I could.” He looked at her. “Why do you ask?”</p><p>“Sometimes I liked to see if I could get to high places. Sometimes it was practical- so I could see where to go next, or to avoid Heartless. But once, in the dark ruins of Cinderella’s world, I climbed so high I could see <em> everything. </em> And I looked at the castle, and there were shooting stars.” Aqua’s voice had turned so quiet Ven could hardly hear her through her helmet. “It was so beautiful. I made a wish- that’d I’d be with you two soon- and it came true.” She raised her voice to a normal speaking level. “I don’t think there will be any stars, but the view is probably nice. What do you think? First one to the top wins?”</p><p>“What happens if you fall?” Terra asked.</p><p>“You get up and climb again.” Aqua paused. “Are you scared?”</p><p>“This just isn’t like you,” Terra said.</p><p>“Yeah,” Ven said. “Doing stupidly dangerous stuff is my thing, Aqua.”</p><p>“O-oh. I guess you’re right. Maybe we should be more careful.”</p><p>She sounded so… sad. Ven didn’t mean to rain on her parade.</p><p>“Not that I’m complaining,” Ven said in his most cheerful voice. “First one to the top wins!”</p><p>He took off running, ignoring Aqua and Terra’s shouts of protest with a cheeky grin. Aqua was fast, but not fast enough to beat Ven to the base of the nearest rock, where he scrambled to the top. He jumped from rock formation to rock formation until he was on one of the spires. They were much slicker than the lumpy glowing rocks, but Ven managed to scramble onto one and start to climb. A slippery patch made him yelp in shock.</p><p>“Be careful.”</p><p>Ven looked down. Aqua was right below him, climbing the slippery spire like someone who had done it a thousand times before. </p><p>Ven set his jaw in determination and started climbing even faster. He got to a flat area and ran up it, using his momentum to jump to the next highest spire. There was no way Aqua would win now! The top was in sight, just one more cliff…</p><p>An armored arm reached down.</p><p>“Need a hand?” Terra asked. </p><p>Ven could hear the smug grin in his voice. He huffed and scrambled up the ledge by himself.</p><p>“How did you beat us?” Ven asked. “You aren’t even out of breath.”</p><p>Terra helped Aqua up, then turned back to Ven.</p><p>“I used my Keyblade Glider.”</p><p>“What? That’s cheating!”</p><p>“Nuh uh,” Terra said. “You said first one to the top wins. You never said I had to climb.”</p><p>“Why you-”</p><p>Ven shoved him, and Terra stumbled a little.</p><p>“Be careful,” Aqua said. “Don’t push each other off now that we’re all here.”</p><p>Ven couldn’t help but smile. Now <em> that </em> sounded like Aqua.</p><p>He sat down at the very tip of the spire, looking down and grinning in exhilaration as the vertigo rushed through him. They were so high up, and they could see everything!</p><p>Not that there was much to see. There were more spires and lumpy rocks that glowed blue. The sandy dust (or was it dusty sand?) that made up the path went on and on, straight into the dark horizon without branching or turning. Was this entire place a trap? Would they ever find Sora? Or would they wander in the darkness forever?</p><p>“It’s so peaceful here,” Terra said.</p><p>Ven felt like someone had smacked him in the back of the head. Why was Terra complimenting the <em> realm of darkness</em>? </p><p>“We’re constantly being attacked by Heartless,” Ven said. “How is that peaceful?”</p><p>“Other than that.” Terra’s voice was quiet, too quiet. “There aren’t any people. Everything’s so much simpler here. It’s just you guys and the Heartless. It’s nice.”</p><p>“I know what you mean,” Aqua said. “It’s so quiet here. The Heartless don’t make that much noise, and we’re the only ones here.”</p><p>How could they like the quiet? It nearly suffocated Ven. Sometimes he had to focus on the soft clank of their armor or start a conversation just so he could hear <em> something</em>. There was no wind murmuring through green palm trees, no rhythm of clear blue waves, no chitter of wildlife. They were the only living things in the realm of darkness, and Ven was never unaware of that fact.</p><p>
  <em> That’s enough negativity. I have to stay positive. </em>
</p><p>“We should take a picture of the three of us!” Ven said. “And I can take a picture of the view and post it on Kingstagram, and everyone will know that we’re okay.”</p><p>“That’s a great idea, Ven,” Aqua said. </p><p>Ven pulled out his phone since Terra and Aqua almost rivaled Sora in their inability to use technology.</p><p>
  <em> I wonder what he’s doing right now. </em>
</p><p>“Smile,” Terra said, snapping Ven from his thoughts. </p><p>“They can’t see our faces through our armor,” Ven realized. “Aw.”</p><p>“Smile anyway,” Aqua said. “The light of your heart will shine through into the picture.”</p><p>That made Ven smile without even thinking of the picture.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The next time they all took a break, Ven decided to call Xion as he leaned against a rock. It took a couple of rings for her to pick up, and when she did, her hair was messy and she was blinking like she just woke up.</p><p>“Ven?”</p><p>“Hey, Xion. Is this a bad time?”</p><p>“It’s really late,” she said, “but that’s alright. I don’t have school tomorrow, so I can chat.” She smiled. “It’s always nice to hear from you. I wish you could call more.”</p><p>“Me too, but…” Ven shrugged. “Time.” He paused. “How long-”</p><p>“I think you’ve been gone three months,” Xion said.</p><p>Ven let out a breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding.</p><p>“Thanks. Uh, if it’s not too much trouble, could you text every three months or so?”</p><p>“Sure! No problem at all. Does it really not feel like time’s been passing? How long has it felt?”</p><p>Ven thought for a moment. </p><p>“I dunno. Longer than a day. Shorter than a year.” He sighed. “I have no idea.” He perked up. “How’s school? Roxas never got to tell me about it.”</p><p>Xion huffed. “It’s so weird. We have to sit down and listen to what grown-ups say for hours! There’s some playing outside, and Roxas and I kick butt, but we have to sit down almost all day.”</p><p>Ven grimaced. He remembered how even a short lecture from Master Eraqus (gahh, the grief was like a smack in the face sometimes) would be difficult to sit still for. Doing nothing but sitting down and listening to someone talk? Ven had no idea why someone would sign up for that.</p><p>“Yikes. Other than that, how are things?”</p><p>“Our friends have been looking through our memories,” Xion said. “They haven’t found anything yet, but it’s fun, like an after-school club that the other kids go to. And Axel has a job now.”</p><p>“Really?”</p><p>“He sells ice cream.”</p><p>Ven laughed. “That’s perfect.”</p><p>Xion nodded. “When we’re done at the mansion, we have ice cream on the clock tower, just like we used to.”</p><p>“Every day?”</p><p>Ven loved ice cream as much as the next guy, but every day sounded excessive even for someone like him with nothing but sweet teeth.</p><p>“Yep! Best friends are people who eat ice cream together.”</p><p>“Huh. I’ve never heard that before.”</p><p>Come to think of it, Ven had never shared ice cream with Aqua and Terra before. It was something they could do once they returned to the realm of light. The thought made him smile.</p><p>“How’s the realm of darkness?” Xion asked.</p><p>“Dark.”</p><p>Xion laughed.</p><p>“No, really, it is. The only light comes from these glowing rocks- like this one here.”</p><p>“Wow, that’s really pretty,” she said.</p><p>Ven shrugged. “You get used to it. And the fact that Heartless attack on a pretty regular basis. But, yeah, the picture I posted pretty much sums up the realm of darkness. It’s not the coolest place I’ve ever been to.”</p><p>
  <em> I don’t get why Aqua and Terra like this place so much.  </em>
</p><p>Xion yawned.</p><p>“I better let you get back to bed,” Ven said. “Sorry for waking you up.”</p><p>“Don’t be,” Xion said. “It’s always nice to hear from you. I’ll tell Roxas you said hi.”</p><p>“You better. ‘Night, Xion.”</p><p>“Safe travels, Ven.”</p><p>He hung up. </p><p>Xion was sleeping. Ven didn’t know if he missed sleeping per se (he had done it for long enough), but there was something comforting and pleasant about snuggling up beneath warm blankets and relaxing on soft, fluffy pillows that just couldn’t be beat. Leaning against a rock in the realm of darkness couldn’t compare.</p><p>And that was okay. Ven wouldn’t want to fall asleep in the realm of darkness even if he could. It was too dangerous, and he had no idea if he would ever wake up.</p><p>Suddenly, leaning against the rock felt more dangerous than fighting. Ven got to his feet.</p><p>“Are we ready to go?”</p><p>Terra and Aqua nodded, and they continued on.</p><p> </p><p>“Oh, no,” Ven said quietly. “Oh nonono.”</p><p>He looked around everywhere, but there was no sign of Aqua or Terra. He couldn’t hear them at all, and he definitely couldn’t see them.</p><p>“AQUA? TERRA?”</p><p>Nothing.</p><p>Ven bit back a frustrated scream. It had looked like a short tunnel that Ven could dart through quickly while Aqua and Terra were mopping up some straggling Heartless and bring back whatever was in the treasure chest that was bound to be there, but the path was long, and it started branching, and Ven could have sworn it looked different on the way in.</p><p>
  <em> Great. I’m trapped inside a magical maze.  </em>
</p><p>At least there were some glowing rocks to light Ven’s way. He figured the way out had to be close to the exit-</p><p>-until the path widened into four separate tunnels.</p><p>“This is bad.”</p><p>What if Aqua and Terra were in danger right now and he couldn’t help them? What if they were calling for-</p><p>Oh, that was right; they all had Gummiphones. All Ven had to do was pull his out and call Terra.</p><p>
  <em> Caller cannot be reached. </em>
</p><p>Ven’s stomach tightened. Maybe Terra’s phone was malfunctioning. He tried calling Aqua.</p><p>
  <em> Caller cannot be reached. </em>
</p><p>The panic turned into ice-cold fear that permeated his entire body. What if he was going to be stuck there forever? What if Sora was there but he would never be rescued because Aqua and Terra were looking for Ven? What if-</p><p>When his hand tightened in fear, his finger clicked another contact.</p><p>
  <em> Calling Lea… </em>
</p><p>Ven gripped his Gummiphone like it was a lifeline.</p><p>“Hey, Ven. What’s up?”</p><p>Ven felt like he could cry.</p><p>“Thank goodness I got through!”</p><p>All the cheer drained from Lea.</p><p>“Hey, what’s wrong?”</p><p>Normally, Ven would be kind of annoyed that someone who was technically the same age as him was talking to him in a soothing voice, but at the moment, he needed all of the comfort he could get.</p><p>“I got seperated from Aqua and Terra, and my calls aren’t getting through to them.” Ven tried not to sound like a kid separated from his parents, but he was sure his panicked desperation leaked into his voice. “Do you have Aqua or Terra’s numbers?”</p><p>Lea scrolled through his phone. “I don’t think so…”</p><p>What if they decided to leave Ven behind to look for Sora? It was probably the best option, but Ven wasn’t like them. He couldn’t survive in the realm of darkness without them- he had a hard enough time when he was by their side.</p><p>“Sorry, I don’t have either of their contact info, but I think Roxas might. Roxas!”</p><p>Roxas came into view. At any other time, Ven would have commented on his new undercut, but it was the last thing on his mind.</p><p>“What’s happening?”</p><p>“Ven here got separated from Aqua and Terra. Do you have their numbers?”</p><p>“No, but I’m pretty sure Naminé has Terra’s number. She mentioned talking to him the other day…”</p><p>“Can you ask her to call him?” Ven hated how desperate his voice sounded.</p><p>“Of course,” Roxas said.</p><p>Ven could do nothing but pace as he made the call.</p><p>“Everything’s going to be okay,” Lea said. “What would Sora say?”</p><p>“I don’t want to think about Sora,” Ven said. He hated how his voice cracked.</p><p>Lea didn’t even get irritated.</p><p>“That’s fair.”</p><p>Roxas looked back on screen. “Naminé’s calling him right now.”</p><p>“So the call went through?”</p><p>“I think so,” Roxas said. “She has to add him to a group call, so things might be slow.” He paused. “I get how you feel though. We’re in the realm of light, and there are still times where I <em> need </em> to see Axel or Xion, you know? To make sure they’re not-”</p><p>“I got through!” Naminé’s tinny voice said through Roxas’s phone.</p><p>“Terra!”</p><p>“Ven!” Two voices shouted.</p><p>“Aqua?”</p><p>“We’re both here,” her voice confirmed. Ven could feel the tension drain from his body. “Where <em> are </em> you?”</p><p>She sounded just a little mad. Ven couldn’t blame her.</p><p>“I went down a side tunnel because I thought there’d be treasure. I’m sorry.”</p><p>“We figured,” Terra said. “If we keep talking, we can follow the sound of your voice.”</p><p>“May I?” Naminé’s voice was soft. “If we talk, you can both hear it on your Gummiphones, but because of how many there are linked to this connection, there may be a sort of… gap between when you receive the sounds. It might make it easier to hear each other in the realm of darkness.”</p><p>Ven only listened to half of what she said and berated himself for it.</p><p>“Okay,” he said. “Where’s Xion?”</p><p>“She’s in detention,” Roxas said, voice low with anger. “She punched a kid for being mean, and now <em> she </em> has to pay the price.”</p><p>“Don’t worry about it,” Lea said. “I got detention all the time when I went to school and I turned out just fine.”</p><p>“You were in a Nobody cult for ten years,” Terra said.</p><p>Everyone laughed.</p><p>“Details,” Lea said with a smile. “Oh, speaking of-”</p><p>“I don’t remember any of it,” Terra said tersely. Ven could feel his discomfort through all four Gummiphones.</p><p>It was the first time Ven had heard anything about his ten years.</p><p>“I figured,” Lea said. “But I’ll send you Isa and Xion’s number. Maybe you guys could… talk about things.”</p><p>All Ven heard was the miscellaneous background noise from everyone else’s phone.</p><p>“Axel, you just made a silence so awkward that it stretched through the boundary of <em> realms</em>,” Roxas said.</p><p>“What can I say? I have a gift.”</p><p>“Wait!” Aqua said. “Say that again.”</p><p>“Uh, I have a gift?”</p><p>There was a pause.</p><p>“Did you hear that?” Aqua asked.</p><p>“Yeah,” Terra said.</p><p>“Hear what?” Ven asked.</p><p>There was another pause.</p><p>“I think we can hear you,” Aqua said. “Make some noise.”</p><p>Ven cupped his hands. </p><p>“AQUA! TERRA!”</p><p>“VEN!’</p><p>“VEN!”</p><p>Their voices echoed through the tunnel.<br/>
Ven laughed in pure relief. “I can hear you guys!”</p><p>“Stay where you are!” Terra called. Ven could hear a little bit of impatience in his voice, too.</p><p>Yikes. Terra was <em> never </em> mad at him. </p><p>“Okay! I’m gonna try guessing which one of these tunnels you’re gonna come from!”</p><p>“Good idea!” Aqua shouted back.</p><p>Their voices were loudest in the tunnel to the far right.</p><p>“You’re almost here!”</p><p>Ven could start to hear their footsteps. They were running.</p><p>“I’m over here!”</p><p>Then Ven saw them turn a corner. They told him to stay there, but he couldn’t help but race towards them to meet them halfway.</p><p>“Ven!”</p><p>The next thing Ven knew, he was being encased in a metal-limbed embrace. Aqua pulled away first to look him over.</p><p>“Are you okay?” she asked.</p><p>“Yeah.”</p><p>“Then <em> what were you thinking wandering off like that?</em>”</p><p>“I’m sorry.”</p><p>Ven heard a laugh from their phones.</p><p>“Sounds like you found each other,” Lea said. </p><p>Ven held up his phone again. “Thanks to you.”</p><p>“We should all exchange numbers so if this happens again, we don’t have to use as many phones,” Naminé said.</p><p>“Good idea,” Terra said.</p><p>Ven already had Roxas and Lea’s number, but Naminé’s number was new. Aqua was about to enter Lea’s number when she paused with a frown.</p><p>“Wait a second. Lea, we already have each other’s numbers.”</p><p>Lea blinked. “What? Oh… oh, there you are!”</p><p>“You had Aqua’s number the entire time?” Ven asked in disbelief.</p><p>“Heh… guess I did. Sorry about that.”</p><p>“I thought you checked!”<br/>
“I did! I guess I just didn’t notice it.”</p><p>Roxas looked over Lea’s shoulder. “It’s right there!”</p><p>“Well I see it now!”</p><p>“The important thing is that we know now,” Aqua said. “Hopefully, we won’t have to do this again, but it should be easier if we have to.”</p><p>“You’re right,” Naminé said. “I’m going to go. Goodbye!”</p><p>“Bye,” Terra said. “And thank you.”</p><p>Naminé hung up very abruptly.</p><p>“You shouldn’t thank her so casually,” Ven said.</p><p>“Huh? Why not?”</p><p>“It’s a long story.”</p><p>“Is it okay if I hang up?” Roxas asked. </p><p>“Yes,” Aqua said. “I don’t think we need the chain of Gummiphones anymore.”</p><p>“Okay. See ya!”</p><p>Terra’s phone went dark.</p><p>“Guess we’re the last ones left,” Lea said. “You should call more often, and not just when you’re separated.”</p><p>“Got it,” Ven said. “And Lea?”</p><p>“Yeah?”</p><p>“Thank you.”</p><p>Lea smiled gently again. Ven couldn’t bring himself to mind.</p><p>“No problem. What are friends for, yeah?”</p><p>Ven nodded. “Bye.”</p><p>“See ya.”</p><p>They hung up. Ven put his Gummiphone away and looked up to see Terra and Aqua staring at him.</p><p>“I’m sorry,” Ven said again. “I thought there’d be a treasure chest, and I just wanted to help-”</p><p>“We know,” Terra said. </p><p>“You can’t do that again,” Aqua said. Her voice was still tense. “This isn’t the realm of light. You can’t wander off like that.”</p><p>“I know! I’m sorry! Do you think I wanted to be separated from you guys? Do you think I wanted to be alone?”</p><p>“Of course not,” Aqua said. She took a breath. “I’m sorry. We were just worried.”</p><p>“I was worried about you too,” Ven said. “Now c’mon. Let’s get out of here.”</p><p>The labyrinth was easier to find their way out when they were together. It felt like the realm had cut its losses trying to seperate them and was focusing on another plan to tear them apart.</p><p>Maybe it was just Ven’s paranoia.</p><p>They continued down the path for a while in silence. Whenever Heartless popped up, they separately cut down the ones nearest them. </p><p>Aqua and Terra drifted together. They looked at each other.</p><p>“You ready?” Terra asked.</p><p>“I’m with you.”</p><p>Aqua held her Keyblade against his. Suddenly, they turned and rushed through the wave of Heartless with a flurry of Keyblade strikes. The entire wave was wiped in seconds.</p><p>Ven’s jaw dropped.</p><p>“Woah…”</p><p>Between the Keyblade War and its aftermath, Ven had forgotten how good his friends were. Sora had grown so much, and Roxas could fight with two Keyblades at once, but they couldn’t hold a candle to Terra and Aqua’s polished ease. Ven was so lucky he got to be friends with them.</p><p>“Ven, look out!”</p><p>Ven turned a second too late to avoid a swipe from a Shadow.</p><p>“Ow.”</p><p>It disappeared with a single hit of Wayward Wind. Ven did another look around to make sure every Heartless was really gone before dismissing Wayward Wind. </p><p>“You okay, Ven?” Terra asked.</p><p>“Yeah. It barely scratched me.”</p><p>“We should take a breather anyway,” Aqua said.</p><p>“Alright,” Ven said. He plopped down on the ground and took out his Gummiphone. Terra and Aqua did the same thing, and soon, he could hear Terra start talking.</p><p>Kingstagram was the same as it always was. Ven was commenting on Roxas’s new haircut when Terra said, “hey, Ven, come here. I got a surprise for you.”</p><p>Ven perked up and put his Gummiphone away. </p><p>“What is it?” he asked. </p><p>Terra showed him his Gummiphone screen. Riku was at the Land of Departure, pointing his phone camera at-</p><p>“CHIRITHY!”</p><p>“Hey, Ven. How’s it going?’</p><p>“Things are going well! I got lost, and there’s still no sign of Sora, but other than that, things are going well. How are things back home?”</p><p>“Oh, you know,” Chirithy said with a gesture of his stubby paws. “Nothing changes very much here.”</p><p>“I know,” Ven said.</p><p>He couldn’t stop grinning. He loved loved <em> loved </em> Chirithy. The second he saw him in the courtyard it felt like someone long gone had finally returned. Everything felt a little brighter with his furry body in Ven’s arms.</p><p>“Have you been looking for Sora?” Ven asked.</p><p>Chirithy pouted and rubbed his paws together.</p><p>“I don’t think I can find him. He always found me.”</p><p>“Found… wait, you’ve met Sora?”</p><p>“Of course! He… he was the one who encouraged me to come back to you.”</p><p>Ven’s heart twinged. Of course he did. That’s who Sora was- who he’d always be; who he’d be again once they found him.</p><p>“Where were you?” And it didn’t feel a surprise that Chirithy knew Ven before Xehanort, (especially now that he knew that he really hadn’t spent his entire life at the Land of Departure) but how did he know him? “What do you mean by ‘come back’?”</p><p>Chirithy’s eyes widened and slapped his paws over his mouth.</p><p>“Me and my big mouth…” he sighed. “I don’t know if I want to tell you, and if I do, I’ll only do it in person.”</p><p>“Aw, now I really want to know.”</p><p>“Consider it something to come back to,” Chirithy said.</p><p>“Alright!”</p><p>As if he didn’t have things to look forward to: sunshine, food, Roxas, Xion, Lea, soft beds, getting his hair ruffled…</p><p>But his best friends were here, and they were looking for Sora, and those were all the reasons Ven needed to stay.</p><p>“We should continue on,” Aqua said. </p><p>“Aw, already?”</p><p>“Aqua’s right,” Chirithy said. “I don’t want to keep you from your mission.”</p><p>“Okay. I miss you, Chirithy.”</p><p>“I miss you too, Ven. Hurry back!”</p><p>“We’ll all race home the second we find Sora.”</p><p>“Bye, Ven.”</p><p>“Bye, Chirithy.”</p><p>Riku hung up the call, and the screen went dark, but Ven’s heart was brighter than ever. That call really made his… not day, per se, but only because there were no days in the realm of darkness. It put him in such a good mood he started singing as they walked down the path.</p><p>He was in the middle of the second verse when Terra suddenly said, “I got it!”</p><p>Ven stopped singing and turned around. </p><p>“Got what?”</p><p>“I finally get why you’re such a good singer. It’s because you’re a Princess of Heart.”</p><p>“I- what?”</p><p>“Stop teasing him, Terra,” Aqua said, but Ven could hear the smile in her voice. </p><p>“I’m serious. Why else would birds land around when he started singing? The only other person I’ve seen where that happened was Snow White.”</p><p>“You think he’s a good singer just because he has a heart of light? You’re good at singing, too, Terra.”</p><p>“Birds don’t stop singing and flock around me.”</p><p>Ven didn’t like thinking about his heart of light, because he would always think of the heart of pure darkness.</p><p>He scowled. He thought he knew what Vanitas was. He thought he finally understood things, but Vanitas’s words at the Keyblade Graveyard changed everything. Was he here in the realm of darkness?</p><p>
  <em> What I am is darkness. </em>
</p><p>Ven tried to shake the thoughts from his head. He could feel in his heart that they weren’t done with each other. Vanitas was going to come back, and Ven would finally deal with him for good, one way or another.</p><p>But he wasn’t there now. Ven was alone with Terra and Aqua, for better or for worse.</p><p>Terra and Aqua laughed at something in their silly argument. Ven smiled.</p><p>It was definitely for the better.</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>Ven didn’t know exactly how long he had been in the realm of darkness (according to Xion it was more than six months), but it was long enough to know that Darksides were dangerous. One was hard enough to deal with, but with three of them waving their giant hands around, Ven felt like he was playing the most dangerous game of tag in existence.</p><p>“<em> Tag, you’re it, </em>” Ven thought as he slashed one in the back of its head.</p><p>He lost himself in the rhythm of battle, so he didn’t know when things went wrong, but he knew when Terra noticed, because he shouted, “AQUA!”</p><p>Ven whipped his head around. She had collapsed into a kneeling position, hands trembling on the handle of her Keyblade.</p><p>He rushed towards her, only stopping to sidestep a swipe from one of the remaining Darksides. </p><p>“Aqua? What’s wrong?”</p><p>All Ven could hear was heavy breathing.</p><p>“Aqua! Can you hear me?”</p><p>No answer.</p><p>Terra blocked a strike from a Darkside and looked back.</p><p>“What’s wrong?”</p><p>“I don’t know! She won’t answer!”</p><p>Of course, that was when one of the Darksides leaned back and started spewing dark projectiles. It would have been possible for Ven to dodge them, or Aqua to put up a barrier against them, but Aqua wasn’t moving and Ven couldn’t have left her.</p><p>Terra retreated to their side.</p><p>“We have to keep them away from her,” he said.</p><p>Ven nodded and held out Wayward Wind. A memory flashed through him: Sora and Riku twirling and leaping around each other to block Xemnas’s endless blasts. But Terra wasn’t as fast or agile as Riku and Wayward Wind didn’t have the reach of Sora’s Keyblade.</p><p>It didn’t matter. All that mattered was keeping Aqua safe.</p><p>A clatter of metal caused Ven to look back. Aqua was stumbling to her feet.</p><p>“It’s okay,” Ven said. “We can keep you safe.”</p><p>If she heard him, she gave no indication. Her breathing was still heavy.</p><p>“It’s okay,” Ven repeated. “You-”</p><p>A flurry of spells shot from her Keyblade. A few of them hit the Darksides, and one of them dissolved into shadow.</p><p>Aqua ran at the remaining one with graceless desperation. A feral shout echoed from her helmet. She started hacking away at the last Darkside like her life depended on it.</p><p>The Darkside noticed and began to reach down.</p><p>“Aqua!” Ven cried.</p><p>She wasn’t making any move to dodge. Ven began to run towards her, but he didn’t know if he could push her away in time.</p><p>“BEGONE!” Terra roared.</p><p>Darkness shot from his Keyblade in an endless stream that engulfed the Darkside until there was nothing left. Aqua looked up from her frenzied attacks and tilted her head as if seeing them for the first time.</p><p>“Terra? Ven?”</p><p>Ven ran to her.</p><p>“Are you okay, Aqua?”</p><p>“Ven?”</p><p>“Yeah?”</p><p>“Ven you’re… you’re here?”</p><p>“Yeah. I’m with you.”</p><p>“Aqua!” Terra ran towards them. “Are you okay? What happened?”</p><p>“Terra?”</p><p>Aqua grabbed his wrist and looked up at him.</p><p>“What are you doing here?”</p><p>“What do you mean?” Terra asked.</p><p>“Why are you here?” Aqua’s voice was mixed with panic and anger. “Why aren’t you in the realm of light?”</p><p>“Aqua, we came here with you,” Terra said.</p><p>“What?”</p><p>Ven took her other hand because it felt like the right thing to do.</p><p>“We’re looking for Sora, remember?” </p><p>“Oh… Sora... Right. I remember now.”</p><p>“Did you forget?” Ven asked.</p><p>“I was back... then,” Aqua said. “I was stuck in the memory. It felt like everything was happening all over again.”</p><p>“You’re with us now,” Ven said. “You found me and woke me up, and then we saved Terra, and then… and now we’re looking for Sora here.”</p><p>“That’s right,” Aqua said. “I think I remember now.”</p><p>“We should rest,” Terra said. </p><p>Ven took Aqua to the nearest rock outcropping and didn’t let go until she sat against it. He plopped down next to her and, after a moment of hesitation, leaned his head against her shoulder. Terra sat down on the other side of her.</p><p>They sat in comfortable silence. Ven listened as Aqua’s breathing slowly evened out. The realm of darkness looked so still without the squirming Heartless. It was such an empty, dead place. </p><p>“Sometimes I wonder if I ever left this place,” Aqua said.  “Maybe you guys aren’t even here, and it’s just the weakness in my heart playing tricks on me.”</p><p>“We’re here, Aqua,” Ven said. “You’re not dreaming. Take it from the guy who slept ten years.”</p><p>That was the wrong thing to say. Aqua turned away.</p><p>“If you can’t trust us, trust this,” Terra said, tapping her helmet. “Trust your armor and your Keyblade. You didn’t have them the first time.”</p><p>“How did you know that?” Aqua’s voice was soft and uncertain.</p><p>“Because you were carrying the Master’s Keyblade in the battle,” Ven said. “And now you have your own again.”</p><p>“I suppose,” Aqua said. “But it doesn’t matter either way. This place is so much nicer with my best friends.”</p><p>She said that as if the realm of darkness could ever be anything close to nice in the first place.</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>Twelve months.</p><p>Ven looked at his Gummiphone in horror. He could have sworn Xion said that only nine months had passed just before the last wave of Heartless. Time was slipping through his fingers. How long would they spend there? Would it be another ten years before Aqua could see the sunshine? </p><p>“Hey guys?” Ven tried to keep his voice steady. “How does our armor work? It keeps the darkness out, right?” </p><p>“That’s right,” Aqua said. “Why? Is the darkness getting to you?”</p><p>“No, but what if my armor is keeping my light in? What if the reason we haven’t found Sora is because he can’t sense our light?”</p><p>“I don’t think that’s how it works, Ven,” Terra said quietly, too quietly, as usual. </p><p>“How do you know?” Ven could feel his voice rising, but he couldn’t stop it. “What if my armor is stopping me from feeling his heart? What if he’s right here and I can’t feel him? SORA!”</p><p>His voice echoed through his helmet. </p><p>Ven remembered when Sora was falling through the darkness. He had given him his armor because it was the only way he could shield him from the cold darkness all around them. </p><p>
  <em> I’m sorry that was all I could do. I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you like you protected me. I’m sorry I can’t find you to wake you up like you woke me up. I’m sorry I couldn’t keep you safe.  </em>
</p><p>Ven felt someone touch his shoulder. </p><p>“If he’s here, we’ll find him,” Terra said. “It doesn’t matter how long it takes.”</p><p>“But it does,” Ven said. “We’ve already been gone a year. I don’t want us to miss another ten years. And I don’t want to leave until we find Sora, but I’m worried about you guys.”</p><p>Aqua knelt to his eye level. Ven couldn’t see her face, but he could picture the gentle smile she saved only for him. </p><p>“We’re fine, Ven. You don’t need to worry about us.”</p><p>“I’m worried because you’re fine! You were stuck here for <em> ten years</em>, Aqua! I thought you would hate it here, but you keep talking about it like it’s a nice place- both of you do! I don’t understand! And what if you decide you like it here better? What if you never want to come back?”</p><p>“Ven…”</p><p>He waited for her or Terra to say something, anything, to the contrary, but to his growing horror, neither of them said anything. </p><p>“So it’s true? You really like it better here?”</p><p>“You don’t understand,” Terra said. Ven could barely hear him. “You can’t understand.”</p><p>“And that’s a good thing,” Aqua said. “I don’t like it better here. I have other friends in the realm of light, and I want to see them again. But... I missed being here. It didn’t feel like ten years the first time, not while I was in it, but this place feels familiar now. Almost like home.” She gave a small, bitter laugh. “Isn’t that horrible?”</p><p>
  <em> I’m sorry. I’m so sorry it took so long. I’m sorry I wasn’t strong enough to come for you sooner.  </em>
</p><p>“No,” Terra said. “I know how you feel. It was hard in... <em> his </em> heart. There was nothing there- no light, not even darkness. It was just me and the Master, trying to keep me alive and believing that things would be okay again. But do you know the worst part?” Terra looked at his hands. “Sometimes I miss him.”</p><p>“We all miss the Master,” Ven said weakly.</p><p>“No, Ven. Sometimes I miss Master Xehanort.”</p><p>Ven felt like he had been sucker-punched. </p><p>“What?” he breathed.</p><p>“You don’t understand,” Terra’s voice broke. “We were together for <em> so long</em>. I hated him, and I still do, so why… why do I miss him?”</p><p>“You’ll adjust,” Aqua said with confidence Ven wished he had. “It’s like living in the realm of darkness. It’s hard to adjust to, and harder to adjust out of, but you’re strong. Soon you’ll forget he was ever there. I promise.”</p><p>“How can you be so sure?” Terra was older and taller than both of them, but he had never sounded so small.</p><p>“Because we’re here with you,” Ven said. “We’ll never be apart again. An unbreakable connection, remember?”</p><p>“Yeah,” Terra said. “Thanks, Ven.”</p><p>Ven wrapped his arms around Terra and Aqua. They were covered in armor, but he could feel the warm light of their hearts on his. </p><p>He smiled. Time didn’t exist in the realm of darkness, so Ven had no idea how long they stood there, but for the first time, he was okay with that.</p><p>Something on Terra began to vibrate. He finally let and fished out his Gummiphone.</p><p>“It’s Riku,” he said.</p><p>Ven’s heart sped up a little. The only reason Riku would be calling Terra, and not the other way around, was if something had happened.</p><p>Terra pressed the screen, and Riku’s face appeared. There were circles under his eyes, and his face was paler than it had been before they left, but his eyes were alight with hope. </p><p>“We have a lead,” he said.</p><p>Ven’s heart became a sun.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>there need to be more time skip fics!</p></blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>